The present invention relates generally to adapters for affixing one structure to another and more particularly to a mounting base for attaching a sighting device to a firearm.
Numerous systems for attaching sighting devices to firearms are known and vary in complexity from the direct attachment of fixed "iron" sights to the firearm for example by means of mounting screws to rather involved base ring arrangements for supporting telescopic sights where the adjustment features for the sight are in the mounting base. Mounting bases are typically employed for attaching telescopic sights to rifles and less frequently for attaching low power telescopic sights to hand guns. In either environment however, the approach is to attach a base or one or more blocks directly to the firearm using machine screws and to then attach the telescopic sight to the base or blocks with mounting rings which encircle the cylindrical body of the telescope. Any of numerous schemes are currently used for attaching the rings to the base or blocks. A direct mounting feature for telescopic sights is sometimes employed with low powered rifles wherein the mounting rings clamp into a pair of grooves cut directly in the receiver of the rifle however this last approach has not met with much acceptance for larger weapons wherein the recoil or other impact may be sufficient to slide the clamping rings and telescope forward or backward along the grooves in the receiver.
Optical sighting devices employing other than the simple cylindrical tube construction of telescopic sights have appeared in recent years and are typified by U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,439,970; 3,524,710; 3,645,635; and 3,836,263 as well as copending applications Ser. Nos. 402,376; 460,216; and 525,094. This last mentioned copending application entitled Low Profile Gun Sight was filed on an even date herewith and is intimately related to the present disclosre. The disclosure of the last mentioned copending application is therefore specifically incorporated herein by reference.
The foregoing nontelescopic optical sights have been provided with adapters for attaching the sights to standard telescope mounting bases and other highly specialized schemes have been devised for attaching these sights to specific firearms, however, these mounting schemes suffer from one or more of the following drawbacks:
THEY PERMANENTLY DEFACE THE FIREARM RESULTING IN A DIMINUTION OF THE RESALE VALUE OF THE FIREARM IF THE SIGHT IS NOT SOLD THEREWITH;
THEY ARE LARGE AND AWKWARD AND, THEREFORE, NOT ONLY ARE THEY NOT AESTHETICALLY PLEASING, THEY ARE FURTHER NOT SUITABLE FOR HAND GUN APPLICATION;
THEY ARE NOT SUFFICIENTLY SECURE TO PREVENT SIGHT MOVEMENT AND RESULTANT LOSS OF AIMING POINT WHEN DEPLOYED ON A HEAVY RECOIL WEAPON; AND
THEY ARE NOT COMPATIBLE WITH A WIDE VARIETY OF OPTICAL SIGHTING DEVICES OR FOR THAT MATTER WITH A WIDE VARIETY OF FIREARMS.